Today we’d like to introduce you to Kiersten Tharp.
Hi Kiersten, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
Sorry to say–my story isn’t brief. It is an insanely long tale solely relying on faith.
Though I’m a proud born and raised West “By God” Virginian, I somehow always knew my future wasn’t in my home among the hills. My mom was a classical musician; she taught in Philippi, my hometown, at what is formerly known as Alderson-Broaddus College, teaching classical voice and performing in countless concerts as a pianist and organist, so I lived in a world where it was important to do what you love. To her, work didn’t feel like work, and I witnessed that every day. There were days when it was her outlet and sometimes even her safe space. Growing up, I longed to be an adult and do what I love, just like her. The problem was I didn’t know which direction to go. Not music–it was in my blood and my soul, yes, but it was not my passion. I received a Bachelor of Arts in Communications at A-B College in hopes that it would take me somewhere. I didn’t have a plan with that degree. In fact, halfway through college, I was just ready to graduate and get to work.
After college, I felt the world open its doors to me. I got my first job within a month of graduating. I got my first place soon after. I added on a part-time job working in a restaurant over the weekends. None of this sounds fabulous to the average adult–a young, single, female paper pusher/waitress living in a tiny and rundown 1-bedroom house in the middle of a sketchy area of WV–but I was ecstatic to finally be an independent, working woman. Life moved me to northern West Virginia where I was working 4 part-time jobs at once, one of which was as a marketing associate for a public theatre. That was my first experience of understanding and believing the phrase “It’s not what you know but who you know.” After nearly a year of piecing together my income and starting to feel the dread of work, I remembered my lifelong goal–do what I love–and I wasn’t working toward that.
But here’s the problem.
How do you work toward doing what you love if you don’t know what it is you love doing?
So I tried to answer that question. I’m creative and need that outlet. I thrive at the interpersonal level of communication. I love to plan things. I love puzzles. I want to help people. I love being in charge. (As the baby with two older brothers, I never had that chance.) I’m pretty good at being organized. I love shopping. I love decorating. I love questions and finding solutions. I love performing and directing…
Then I remembered. For years, I had had a secret, farfetched dream of moving to New York City to make it into Broadway and eventually become a movie director. I looked into acting schools and courses as I recalled the grueling auditions I witnessed at the theatre. I then looked into the costs of living and immediately shot that idea down. After that moment, I felt it in my gut–I’m not supposed to live in WV anymore. I decided to quit all my jobs and move to Georgia to stay with extended family until I figured out what the next step was.
No job.
No money.
No ideas.
I was purely walking by faith.
Exactly one week after I moved to GA, I was about to walk out of the door to look for a job when my aunt handed me the paper and said that a new position at a local dealership was looking to hire a new receptionist. I went there first, and I was hired on the spot. The next day, I met my now husband, Chris. It turned out that he worked there too. The managers noticed my hard work ethic and excellent customer service skills, so they let me try sales, even though I knew absolutely nothing about cars. They didn’t care. “You’re not selling the car. There are cars just like these down the street. You’re selling you.” I was told that many times within my first few months of working in car sales. That lesson was brutal yet necessary to my journey. I didn’t have much confidence nor self-esteem, but with much guidance and wisdom from managers and colleagues along with endless support and encouragement from Chris, I pushed myself to give me the confidence I never had. That time of my life really changed and molded me, and I was grateful for it and still am. I had a wonderful partner, my own place, good income, new friends, and family nearby for the first time in my life. The problem was still there though. I didn’t love what I was doing. In fact, it was quite the opposite. I hated it. It sucked everything out of me. Being on 100% commission means that if you’re not there, you’re not making money, so I worked 60+ hours per week. I rarely took time off, and I hated myself for it. I was about to quit when I was offered a position in the commercial department as an account manager. The hours weren’t near as rigorous, the pay was even better, I was managing the most profitable accounts, I had my own office instead of just a desk, and I was still working with Chris.
I hated it even more.
I thought those pros were the issue before; they weren’t. It was the environment. I never ever knew that was something to consider until that experience. The car business is a man’s world, and this world was toxic for me. All that mattered was money, and that greedy, selfish mentality was carved into my brain which took a serious toll. I dragged myself through it every day because I felt stuck for no reason except for the paycheck I had practically sold my soul for.
The bright light in all of this was my blossoming relationship with Chris. We moved in together just down the street from the dealership, and about 7 months later, he proposed. I began planning our wedding, and it was the most fun I had ever had. I spent more time on that than actually working, but I didn’t care. I didn’t hire a planner; I had me. Nobody told me what to do or how to do it. I just knew instinctually. I made a timeline. I knew what to put on the invitations. I created a detailed photo shot list. I printed out the contact info for all the vendors just in case we needed them. On the day of our wedding after we finished with all the photos, I gathered everyone in preparation for the ceremony and told each person individually what time they needed to be where. I literally stopped and blurted out, “I need to do this for a living!” Everyone smiled and yelled back at me, “YEAH YOU DO!!” I will never forget that moment as long as I live.
We invited some friends from work, and they commented for weeks after that it was the best wedding they had ever been to. Family said the same. After that, I had friends and colleagues ask if I could plan this party or put together this small event. Absolutely! The owner of the dealership even asked me to plan the dealership Christmas party. Along with the two sister stores, there were about 300 people there, and so many said it was the best corporate Christmas party they ever attended. That was one of the best moments of working there–planning that event.
And then it was 2020. That March, I was one of the first ones to get COVID. It practically happened overnight, and I was terrified. I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t walk. I felt like a vegetable, yet nobody would test me. At that time, each person had to have every known symptom to be tested for COVID; I didn’t lose my taste or smell. It took nearly a month to finally be tested, and by that time, I was negative. I wasn’t getting any better, and I didn’t know what to do except go to the hospital–the one thing we were trying to avoid. We just got out of debt, and in going to the hospital, we would be right back in debt. But more importantly, if I were to go in, would I come back out? If I’m put on the ventilator, would I come off it? When would I be able to see my husband? Would I ever see him again? Since all dealerships never closed, Chris made the executive decision that he would stay home until I could actually walk around without passing out like I had been doing. That took nearly a month. Countless nights, I would cry in bed while gasping for air. Family would call to check on me, and I literally couldn’t speak longer than a minute or two. All that time while I was fighting for my life, my boss would ask when I was returning and say that I need to be back in the office to be making money. And there it was–that toxic word. Money. With everything I had gone through and experienced up to that point, money didn’t matter anymore. I sent in my resignation letter and went in the next morning before anyone else arrived to collect my things. I nearly passed out doing so, but I never looked back.
I had long COVID for 7 months, but I believe that God gave me COVID for two reasons. I know now that if I hadn’t been sick, I never would’ve left my job. God practically pushed me out because that was the right thing for me to do, but I couldn’t do it myself. Also, and more importantly, before COVID started, Chris and I had been trying for a child for months, during which time I suffered from a gut-wrenching miscarriage. At the end of my recovery from COVID, we were pregnant. I truly believe to my core that if I hadn’t left my job, we wouldn’t have Katie today.
After giving birth, I decided that my job was to take care of our baby, so I stayed home. What I didn’t expect was suffering from severe post-partum depression. After nearly a year of trying different medications and a variety of doses, I finally started to come out of that dense fog. Once I felt a little like me again, I knew I wasn’t meant to be a stay-at-home mom. Being a mom is part of me; being a career woman is another part. It was at that point that my cousin approached me to see if I would be willing to plan her daughter’s surprise engagement party. I jumped at the chance. I put my heart and soul into it, and I was back to loving everything about it. It didn’t feel like work. As we were finishing decorating, my cousin took me aside and said, “THIS is what you should do. All of this. You’re really good at it, and you love it. Start your own event planning business.” It was in that moment that I felt the stars align and all the pieces coming together. I have a degree in Communications where I learned that I thrive at one-to-one. My work experience includes sales, customer service, and marketing. I can be creative, solve problems, put pieces together, be in charge, and help people. I can revolve my work schedule around Katie. I can create my own environment which will attract the right clientele, affect events on the day, and impact the work experience for the crew and the vendors. Most importantly, it’s what I love.
So just like when I moved from WV to GA with no job, no money, and no ideas, I jumped in purely on faith, and I haven’t looked back.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
No road in the world is smooth. My road is no different. I didn’t know one thing about starting a business let alone running and managing one. Where do you start? How do you start? How do I make sure this is done correctly and legally? What happens if I do it wrong? What are the things I need to put in place to be considered legit?
I hardly remember those first 5 months; it was an absolute whirlwind. I spent countless hours researching the proper steps, making initial decisions, building the foundation to my business, creating my business website from scratch, spreading the word on social media, making contact with well-renowned and local wedding and event vendors, knowing my market, visiting local venues, and so much more. I slept maybe 3-4 hours just about every night with a few all-nighters thrown in here and there. Our baby Katie was 15 months old when I started too. Since my husband Chris was (and still is) working 12 hours every day 5 days a week, I spent my days juggling between raising my baby and my new baby, aka my business.
Let’s also add the mental, emotional, and psychological anxiety and weight of it all. What if I fail? What if I don’t make any money? What happens if I’m actually bad at this? What if I’m the cause of ruining someone’s special day? I would never forgive myself if that happened. When would I know if I should throw in the towel? Am I a bad mom for making this change? Am I hurting us financially? Could this just be a waste of time and effort? Is this even worth it? How am I going to do this?
Now that I have experience and wisdom under my belt, I can answer every one of those anxious internal questions. However, there was one question I refused to even ask myself: Who can I ask for help? Now, I feel confident in speaking for the majority of the world when I say–nobody gets to where they are alone. I thought I had to though. I couldn’t tell you why. Undoubtedly, my stubborn, independent nature was a large factor. Fortunately, God put people in my life from the get-go who knew I would be too hesitant to ask yet jumped in anyway. My family, new acquaintances who became instant friends, my old BNI group–they all guided me, worked with me, supported me, and helped me. The most prominent and vital person was my husband Chris. He saw what he could do and how to help without even asking. He worked long hours, took Katie off my hands the moment he would walk in the door, covered all the business expenses, listened to my endless concerns and worries, and helped with countless decisions. He has been my biggest cheerleader from day one, and there is no way I would be where I am without him. I owe so much of my success to him.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Great Days Event Planning?
Planning any event isn’t easy to do alone; that’s where Great Days Event Planning comes in. From weddings, parties, corporate events, and anything in between, I plan incredible events for those who don’t have the time or expertise to hash out the details. My creativity and attention to detail will make any event not only memorable but also easy. Each person is different with what they need; some want to put it all together themselves and only need a day-of coordinator, whereas others just want to arrive with everything done for them. Different level packages are available to accommodate different needs. Services available include day-of coordination, conceptually designing the venue, decorating the venue, setup/breakdown, cleanup, booking vendors, creating the timeline, access to my inventory of decor, and so much more!
I specialize in weddings; that’s where my heart lies. Not only is there so much more to do and think about, but there is also far more pressure and anxiety that comes with it for any number of reasons. It’s supposed to be the most important day of a woman’s life, but the planning process can make or break the emotional connection to the wedding day itself. It’s not right for a bride to look back and think, “Man, I’m so glad that’s over!” No person should feel that way! I’m here to change that by being more than just a planner but also a shoulder, a neutral party, a guide, and a friend. I’ve been dubbed more than once by my brides as “the wedding bff” which, out of all my awards and recognitions, is what I’m most proud of.
Do you have any advice for those looking to network or find a mentor?
When I first opened my business, I needed to learn my market since I knew of zero venues and zero vendors. Since I was juggling the very early stages of being a business owner and being a new mom, I decided to stay local as much as possible at that time which meant only learning about all of the most known *local* venues and connecting with all of the best reviewed *local* vendors. I also wanted to create my own preferred vendor list as a foundation and gradually build from it.
I decided to tour as many venues as possible within an hour distance south of the airport (because Atlanta is…well…Atlanta). One of the first venues I visited was a venue in Peachtree City called Lela’s Place, an absolutely lovely spot with a French country vibe. I ended up talking to the owner, Lela, for hours. She offered to let me work her weddings and events to help with setup and breakdown during the busy season to see what it’s really like which I immediately accepted. She pretty much took me under her wing, and I learned what to do, what not to do, where I would need help, what works, what doesn’t work, and most importantly if this world was where I was meant to be. It was, and I wanted more. That experience was vital, and to this day, I am immensely grateful for that opportunity.
I also researched the best reviewed vendors near me–florist, caterer, DJ, etc.–and met with them to get to know them. Their reviews weren’t the only thing that mattered to me though; I was also concerned with how well we would work together. After what I encountered in the car business, I wanted to be in control of my environment which meant choosing those who were amazing people who brought their A+ game. In putting all of that in motion, it gave me good connections off the bat, some of whom I met early on are still not only my preferred vendors but also my trusted go-to people, mentors, and friends. I never wanted any of my connections to be all about me me me. To this day, I want to be sure that we’re working as a team and having a good time doing it. Don’t get me wrong–I have dropped a couple of early vendors who weren’t a good fit for different reasons. I didn’t want to hurt anybody’s feelings, but I had to learn to follow my gut and be assertive in order to protect my brand and reputation. That was hard yet necessary. As I have grown and worked a lot of events, I have also met and worked with new vendors whom I have added to my own preferred vendor list which has been wonderful. Same with venues–I have worked at a number of local venues and have connected with a number of owners/managers. I help them, and they help me. Notice I didn’t say “BECAUSE they help me.” None of us succeed if we don’t help each other and work together to bring out the best in one another. Working with those who bring their A+ game every time lets me rest easy that the event is going to be amazing, and I have nothing to worry about. I’m unbelievably blessed to have found and created a reliable, hardworking network of people who frankly make me look good.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.greatdayseventplanning.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/greatdayseventplanning
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/greatdayseventplanning
- Other: https://www.theknot.com/marketplace/great-days-event-planning-fayetteville-ga-2082045
Image Credits
Marge Scimeca with Shot By Marge
Alyssa Angelo with AAngelo Media
Courtney Beauchamp with Courtney Elyse Photography
Calvin Cummings with Eivan’s Photo & Video
Erica Colon with Bloom Bebe Studio
